The primary difference between a standard game and a gambling game is the wager, and wagering methods largely define the appeal of a gambling game. Many of the most common casino games have been popular for centuries, and for the most part, the wagering methods used to gamble on the results of the games are equally as hallowed. By offering a new method of wagering, the excitement of existing games may be enhanced, and players will be further attracted to play.
Traditional gambling, especially as seen in casinos, is conducted in two main modes. The first, most common mode involves players betting against the house. This includes games such as blackjack or roulette. The rules and setup of these games are designed such that the odds favor the house over the players, and from this odds discrepancy the house makes its profit. Such games deny the player the opportunity to test the player's luck in an even odds situation.
Additionally, the wager distribution in these games does not allow the player to win more than the amount the player bet on a given bet except where the odds are prohibitive against the player winning. In blackjack, where players have close to equal odds of winning, players only have the opportunity to win as much as the amount of their bet, except on rare blackjack hands. In other games, such as roulette, it is possible for the player to win many times the amount of the bet, but only if the player defeats odds such as thirty-eight to one. None of these games allow players having equal odds of winning to win more than the amount of their bet.
The second, less common casino gambling mode involves players competing against each other. An example of such a game is poker. However, unlike games against the house, which allow multiple players to win, these games are usually formulated such that the winner takes all. This offers less excitement than a game in which multiple players win on each bet.
Additionally, in games where players compete directly against each other, usually one player must serve as a banker or a player/banker. Where a player is solely the banker, that player cannot enjoy playing the game on that round. Where a player serves as a player/banker, disputes over money handling are more likely to occur as the banker has a direct stake in who wins or loses. Use of a banker or player/banker also complicates the game, as some means becomes necessary to identify which player serves the role each round.
Finally, few games in either mode provide the opportunity for a second level of wagering in which second line wagerers may wager between themselves on the relative success of the active players. No background art has been found which uses such second level wagering in combination with a method of wager distribution which allows multiple second line wagerers to win on each bet.
None of the foregoing games use wager distribution methods in which multiple players win each round, all players may play every round, all players compete against each other at even odds while still having the opportunity to win an amount greater than which they bet, and second line wagering is permitted. Furthermore, none of the foregoing games apply such a wagering method to double-hand games such as Pai Gow, Pai Gow Poker, and Double Hand Poker.
In Double Hand Poker, each player receives seven cards, from which that player forms two hands: a front, two-card hand and a back, five-card hand. In play, each player's front hand is compared against the other front hands, and each player's back hand is compared against the other back hands. Double Hand Poker is usually played with one pot, and to win the pot, one player must win (have the highest ranked hand) both the front hand and the back hand. This method of playing Double Hand Poker results in many "pushes" in which one player wins the front hand and another player wins the back hand.
No background art has been identified wherein Double Hand Poker is played with separate front hand and back hand pots with the winner of the front hand taking the front hand pot and the winner of the back hand taking the back hand pot.